Toy railroad



J. A. MOFFITT TOY RAILROAD Filed March 26, 1927 5 sheets sheet l Aug. 7; 1928.

J. A. MOFFITT TOY RAILROAD Filed March 26. 1927 i s Sheets-Sheet 2 AVARVA 4.

v INVENTOR 1.737221 4- fifaflz'fi ATTORNEY Aug. 7, 1928.

J. A. MOFFITT TOY RAILROAD Filed March 26, 1927 a Sheets-Sheet 3 Jam A 1%}??? ATTOR NEY Patented Aug. 7,1928.

PATENT, OFFICE.

JOHN A. MOFFIT'I, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT.

TOY RAILROAD.

Application filed. March 26, 1927, Serial No. 178,549.

lfhis invention relates to toy railroads and material for building same.

The main object of the present invention is to provide, for use in a toy railroad, a track structure which will possess the desirable quality of flexibility.

A further object of this invention is to provide a structure which can be built up to provide a straight track, curves in either direction or grades, thus furnishing a threedirectional structure which owing to the element of variability thereby possessed will more nearly conform to the track conditions of a railroad proper and thus attract the con tinued attention of children.

Another object of the invention is to pro vide elements which can be utilized to con struct, in a simple yet efficient manner, such appurtenances as are to be found in ord1- nary railroads, for example, bridges, thereby furnishing a further stimulation to child interest in the toy structure.

A still further object of the invention is to provide elements for a toy track structure by which the rails can be attached to or de tached from the ties by a simple operation and without the employment of extraneous fastening means.

it further object of the invention is to provide a toy railroad which is'capable of being built up and knocked down with a minimum of trouble and labor.

With the above and other objects in view the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate the preferred embodiments of the present toy railroad structure.

lin the drawings Figure 1 is a top plan view of a toy track structure constructed according to the present invention witha truck shown in position thereon; v

Fig. 2 is a similar view to Fig. 1 but showing the track structure positioned to form a curve Fig. 9 is a perspective view, also on an enlarged scale, of a tie constructed accord: mg to this invention showing the means employed for connecting the rails to the ties;

Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line AA of Fig. 9;

Figs. 11 and 12 are perspective views of elements adapted to be utilized in the con itlllctlOIl of the present toy railroad strucure;

Fig. 13 is a side View of a connecting member adaptedto be similarly used, and,

Fig. 14: is a side view of a modified tie.

Referring first of all to Figures 1., 2 and 9 of the drawings which show a track constructed according to the present invention, 1 ndicates the ties and 2 the rails, whilst 3 in Figure 1 indicates atruck placed in position thereon. The rails 2 are formed, according to this lnvention, from helical or coiled springs whlch can conveniently be made in, say, sixfoot lengths.

The ties 1 are preferably made of wood and comprlse elongated bodies, square or rectangular in cross section, having at their ends laterally projecting integral pins 4 which may be rounded or square in cross section as may be found convenient.

On its upper face each tie is out-away to provide a centrally disposed recess 5 at the extremities of which are disposed slots 6 which preferably follow the arc of a circle and which constitute the means whereby the rails are attached to the ties in order to form the track.

The connection between the rails and ties as will at once be realized is a simple one, it being only necessary tobuild up the track, to exert a slight pressure on the rails to compress or snap them at appropriate intervals into the arc-shaped slots 6 in the ties, whereas, to knock down the track, the rails can be easily pulled from the ties, or-vice versa. Furthermore, the connection is preferably such that, after a rail has been positioned with respect to a tie or ties, it can be moved longitudinally wit-h respect to the latter without destroying the connection, this feature allowing of any necessary adjustment in case connection between rail and tie is not made at the correct place.

Therecessed portion 5 in the ties is provided so that the wheel flanges of the toy rolling stock can pass over said ties without bumping up as would otherwise be the case. Such recessed portions, however, as will be understood, could be reduced to slots, one inside each rail, of a. width just suflicient to allow the free passage of the wheel flanges over the ties. Such a structure is shown in Fig. 14 where 7 indicates two such slots. In this figure a centrally disposed semi-circular slot 8 is also shown which is adapted to receive a third rail for supplying power to move the rolling stock employed, this third rail being also preferablyconstructed in the form of a coiled spring.

It will be noted that the tops of the rails 2 when embedded in the slots 6 project slightly above the ties 1 to give the necessary clearance for the wheels.

The rails being constructed in the form of a coiled spring it will be seen that when connected to ties such as those above described the tracks can be made to follow any desired predetermined path, and can be readily knocked down and again rebuilt to follow another path and so on. At one time, for example a circular track might be built, at another a straight track or a curved track, thus providing endless possibilities calculated to attract the continual interest of children and more nearly reproducing the natural conditions encountered in railroad tracks proper.

Any suitable means for connecting two lengths of coiled wire spring together to provide the desired length of rail can be employed. In Figure 10, such means comprise a short plug 9 of wood or metal adapted to fit partly within each of the adjacent ends of the springs to be connected. Such means may, however, be dispensed with, it being sufiicient if a tie be provided at the meeting point of said adjacent ends, that is to say, so disposed that one of said ends can be secured in one half of a slot 6 in said tie and the other end in the other half.

In addition to. lateral bending to provide curves, the material of which the rails are formed also permits of their bein directed upward and downward to provi e grades. Thus the track can be carried up from a lower plane to a higher one andthen down again, such for example, as up over a bridge and then back to the original plane as shown in Figures 3 and 4.

' To construct such a bridge there'areprovided, in addition to track members hereinbefoi'edescribed, that is to say, ties and rails, a plurality of building or construction elements 10, two of which are shown by way of example in Figures 11 and 12. These elements (which of course are to be made in varying lengths) consist simply of a straight piece of wood or metal provided adjacent each end with an opening 12 adapted to receive and cooperate with the pins 4 of the ties 1. Thus the track may be built up in the usual way and then elevated and held in the desired position and formation b interconnecting the ties by means of a p urality of en 11 elements 10. All sorts of structures can thus be made and as it is a question of merely using the imagination it is not thought necessary to describe in detail any specific structure, more particularly as a glance at Figures 7 and 8 of the drawings clearly show how the-elements 8 are detachably connected to the ties 1 through the medium of the pins 4 of the latter and the holes 12 of the former, the connection being such as will permit of the structure being readily knocked down after it has served its purpose and its components re-used there'- after for other structures as fancy may dictate.

I In lieu of using the track ties 2 with their recesses 5 and slots 6 in the construction of various railroad structures such as bridges, the modified plain tie 21 with projecting pins 24 shown in Figure 13 can be utilized as connecting members for the various construction elements 10. Thus, in the bridge construction illustrated in Figures 3 and 4 and 7 and 8 these connecting, members 21 would be used for the bridge structure proper as and where shown.

Figures 5 and 6 show a loop-the-loop stru -ture built with the rails, ties, construction elements and connecting members hereinbcfore described. In this case the track is built up as usual and connecting members 21 and construction elements 10 of different lengths are then added to produce the nee-- essary steep incline and loop. It is to be observed that the construction elements 10 are capable of fulfilling different functions; for example, in the figures now under description, those indicated by the reference 10 act as base or ground members, those by l0 as elevating pillars or supports, those by 10 as cross-tics or struts, those by 10 as track stiffening members, and those by 10 as loop retaining members.

In order that trucks or other rolling stock can continue along the track after they have looped-the-loop it is of course necessary to build the loop as a spiral; thus the ties, rails and construction members must be moved gradually to one side in the building operation, or side-stepped as it were as shown in Figure 6. This is accomplished by arranging one end of each of the elements 10 on the inside of the pin 4: of one tie and the other end of that element on the outside of the pin 4 on the next adjacent tie 2, the first end of the succeeding element being. of

course arranged inside of the second end of arrangement is of course used for such elements with relation to the connecting members 21. I

WVhat I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. Rails for use in a toy railroad made of flexible material in coiled form.

2. Rails for use in atoy railroad made in the form of helical springs. v

3. Ina toy railroad, the combination of supporting means, and rails in the form of coiled springs adapted to be carried by said supporting means.

4. In a toy railroad, the combination of supporting means, rails in the form of coiled springs, and means for connecting said rails to said supporting means.

5. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising rails in the form of coiled springs, a plurality of ties, and means for connecting said rails to said ties.

6. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising rails in the form. of helical springs, a plurality of ties, 1i3nd means for connecting said rails to said 7. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising rails in the form of coiled springs, a plurality of ties, and means for detachably connecting said rails to said ties.

8. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising rails in the form of coiled springs, a plurality of ties, and means carried by said ties for detachably connecting said rails to said tiesl '9. A tie for use in a toy railroad comprising an elongated body portion having in its upper face arc-shaped rail-retaining slots with a restricted rail-receiving gap.

10. A tie for use in a toy rallroad comprising an elongated body portion having a recess in its upper face terminating in areshaped rail-receiving slots and a construction pin projecting outwardly from each end of said body portion.

11. In a toy railroad, means for building.

a track structure comprising ties havlng areshaped slots therein and rails adapted to cooperate with said slots, the said slots having restricted rail-receiving gaps.

12. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising ties having slots therein and rails formed of coiled springs adapted to engage and be retained in position by said slots.

13. In a toy railroad, a track structure comprising rails formed of coiled springs, a plurality of ties supporting said rails and means connecting the rails and ties comprising a pair of arc-shaped slots cut in the upper surface of each tie and spaced apart to give the desired track width.

14. In a toy railroad, a track structure 1 comprising rails formed of coiled springs,

a plurality of ties supportingsaid rails and means of detachably connecting the rails and ties comprising a pair of arc-shaped.

means whereby said rails can be connected to said ties by the exertion of pressure.

16. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising a plurality of ties, rails formed of coiled springs, and means whereby said rails can be detac-hably connected to said ties by the exertion of slight hand pressure and detached therefrom by a simple pulling apart operation.

17. In atoy railroad, means for building a track structure, comprising rails and a plurality of ties, each tie being provided in its upper face with a pair of spaced-apart arcshaped slots with restricted rail-receiving gaps and a recess located between said slots, for the purposes stated.

18. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising coiled spring rails and a plurality of ties, each tie being provided with a pair of spaced-apart arcshaped slots in its upper face and a recess located therebetween, for the purposes stated.

19. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising rails formed of coiled springs, a plurality of ties, means carried by said ties for connecting said rails and ties and means permitting the wheels of toy rolling stock to pass over clear of said ties when the rails are in position on said ties.

20. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising supporting means, lengths of coiled spring constituting slight hand rails and means for connect-ing the adjacent ends of said lengths to provide rails of the desired length.

21. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising supporting means, lengths of coiled spring constituting rails and means'for detachably connecting the adjacent ends of said lengths to provide rails of the desired length.

22. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising a plurality of ties, rail-receiving means on said ties, and rails formed of coiled spring metal adapted to cooperate with said rail-receiving means to form a straight track, curves and up-anddown grades.

23. In a toy railroad, a track structure comprising a plurality of ties, and coiled wire rails capable of being bent to form curves and up-and-down grades supported thereby.

24. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising a plurality of ties, and coiled wire rails capable of being bent to'form curves and up-and-down grades detachably connected thereto.

25. In a toy railroad, a track structure comprising a plurality of ties, and rails rality of ties adaptedvto support said rails,

- outwardly projecting pins on said ties, and a plurality of construction elements adapted to cooperate with said pins and ties to produce the desired structure.

29. Means for building a toy railroad comprising rails formed of coiled springs, a plurality of ties adapted to support said rails, outwardly projecting pins on said ties, a plurality of connecting members, outwardly plv jeoting pins on said members, and a plurality of construction elements adapted to cooperate with said pins to produce the desired structure. c

30. Means for building a toy railroad comprising rails, a plurality of ties adapted to support said rails, outwardly projecting pins on said'ties, and a plurality of construction elements adapted to co-operate with said pins and ties to produce the desired structure.

31. Means for building a toy railroad comprising rails, a plurality of ties adapted to support said rails, outwardly projecting pins on said ties, a plurality of connecting members, outwardly projecting pins on said members, and a plurality of construction elements adapted to co-operate with said pins to produce the desired structure.

32. In a toy railroad the combination of .slotted ties and helical spring rails partly embedded in said slots.

33. In a toy railroad, the combination of rails formed of coiled springs, a plurality of ties supporting said rails, pins on the ends of said ties, and a plurality of elongated construction elements having openings near the ends thereof co-operating with said pins and positioning and supporting the ties and rails carried thereby.

34. In a toy railroad, the combination of rails formed of coiled springs, aplurality of ties supporting said rails, pins on the ends of said ties and a plurality of elongated construction elements having openings adjacent the ends thereof co-operating with said pins and supporting and positioning the ties and rails carried thereby.

35. In a toy railroad, a track structure for assembly by the user, comprising flexible rail sections, and readily detachable means for temporarily engaging said sections and retaining' same in bent form to form curved andinclined tracks.

36. A rail for use in a toy railroad, made from a .wire bent about the longitudinal center line of the rail.

37. A rail for use in atoy railroad, made from a flexible wire bent about the center line of the rail to provide an open core. 38. A rail for use in a toy railroad, made from a flexible metallic wire bent so as to provide an open longitudinal core and to form a flexible structure.

39. In a toy railroad, means for building a track structure comprising rails in the form of coiled springs, and ties adapted to support said rails.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

JOHN A. MOFFITT. 

